Staff report

The CIAA released its basketball tournament seedings on Sunday.

Livingstone’s women’s team received the No. 3 seed for the Southern Division.

Livingstone’s forfeits are now officially “nullifications,” for what it’s worth.

Officially, the Blue Bears’ divisional record is 6-4, with a conference record of 6-10. Nine of those 10 conference losses reflect  nullifications of games Kyra Crosby, who was deemed ineligible, played in.

Livingstone plays a 2:20 game on Tuesday at Time Warner Cable Arena against Northern Division No. 6 seed Bowie State (4-12, 2-8).

If the Blue Bears win that one, they’ll take on Southern Division No. 2 seed Johnson C. Smith at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. J.C. Smith got a first-round bye.

Men

The CIAA seeds its  tournament based on divisional records but has always used conference records as the next tiebreaker when divisional records are identical and teams split head-to-head.

Not this time.

Livingstone and Winston-Salem State tied for the Southern Division championship and split their games.

Livingstone has the superior conference record, and in past years, would have been a No. 1 seed.

But the CIAA is using points differential this year — you read that correctly, points differential — in the games between the two teams as a tiebreaker before it considers conference record.

Winston-Salem State won 89-80. Livingstone won 86-83. Advantage: Winston-Salem State.

As the No. 2 seed in the Southern Division, Livingstone opens play in a Thursday quarterfinal at 7 p.m. against Northern Division No. 3 seed Lincoln.

Semifinals are Friday and championship games are set for Saturday.

Livingstone will have to win the CIAA tournament to make the Division II playoffs.